In a medium skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in cherries, 1/4 cup water and brown continue to stir until mixture boils and thickens, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice.

To prepare the pancakes

In a small bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.

In a large bowl, beat together ricotta cheese and egg yolks until light and fluffy, about 1 minute. On low speed, add flour mixture alternately with milk in 2 additions each, beating just until blended. Be sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.

In a clean bowl with clean beaters, beat egg whites with cream of tartar until stiff but not dry. Fold about 1/4 of whites into ricotta mixture - gently fold in the rest of the whites in 3 additions.

Preheat nonstick griddle - lightly coat with oil, if desired.

Drop batter by 1/4 cupfuls onto the griddle - use an off-set spatula to gently spread each mound of batter to form a 3 1/2" round. Cook until bubbles form on tops of each pancake, about 3 minutes. Flip pancakes over and continue to cook until golden brown on the bottoms, about 2 minutes. Serve pancakes with cherry sauce.